The present invention generally relates to the use of multi-specific molecules and in particular multi-specific antibodies for treating fabrics, especially garment, with a benefit agent, and apparatus used therein. More in particular, the invention relates to a method of delivering a benefit agent to a selected area of the fabric for exerting a predetermined activity. In a preferred embodiment, the invention relates to a method of stain bleaching on fabrics which comprises using multi-specific molecules to pretreat the stained area of the fabric.
Multi-functional, in particular multi-specific agents including bi-specific agents are well known in the art. Gluteraldehyde, for example, is widely used as a coupling or crosslinking agent. The development of bi- and multi-functional antibodies has opened a wide scale of new opportunities in various technological fields, in particular in diagnostics but also in the detergent area.
WO 98/56885 (Unilever) discloses a bleaching enzyme which is capable of generating a bleaching chemical and having a high binding affinity for stains present on fabrics, as well as an enzymatic bleaching composition comprising said bleaching enzyme, and a process for bleaching stains on fabrics. The binding affinity may be formed by a part of the polypeptide chain of the bleaching enzyme, or the enzyme may comprise an enzyme part which is capable of generating a bleach chemical that is coupled to a reagent having the high binding affinity for stains present on fabrics. In the latter case the reagent may be bispecific, comprising one specificity for stain and one for enzyme. Examples of such bispecific reagents mentioned in the disclosure are antibodies, especially those derived from Camelidae having only a variable region of the heavy chain polypeptide (VHH), peptides, peptidomimics, and other organic molecules. The enzyme which is covalently bound to one functional site of the antibody usually is an oxidase, such as glucose oxidase, galactose oxidase and alcohol oxidase, which is capable of forming hydrogen peroxide or another bleaching agent. Thus, if the multi-specific reagent is an antibody, the enzyme forms an enzyme/antibody conjugate which constitutes one ingredient of a detergent composition. During washing, said enzyme/antibody conjugate of the detergent composition is targeted to stains on the clothes by another functional site of the antibody, while the conjugated enzyme catalyzes the formation of a bleaching agent in the proximity of the stain and the stain will be subjected to bleaching.
WO-A-98/00500 (Unilever) discloses detergent compositions wherein a benefit agent is delivered onto fabric by means of peptide or protein deposition aid having a high affinity for fabric. The benefit agent can be a fabric softening agent, perfume, polymeric lubricant, photosensitive agent, latex, resin, dye fixative agent, encapsulated material, antioxidant, insecticide, soil repelling agent, anti-microbial agent, or a soil release agent. The benefit agent is attached or adsorbed to a peptide or protein deposition aid having a high affinity to fabric. Preferably, the deposition aid is a fusion protein containing the cellulose binding domain of a cellulase enzyme. The compositions are said to effectively deposit the benefit agent onto the fabric during the wash cycle.
According to DE-A-196 21 224 (Henkel), the transfer of textile dyes from one garment to another during a washing or rinsing process may be inhibited by adding antibodies against the textile dye to the wash or rinse liquid.
WO-A-98/07820 (PandG) discloses amongst others rinse treatment compositions containing antibodies directed at cellulase and standard softener actives (such as DEQA).
It has now surprisingly been found that a two-step process in which multispecific molecules are bound to pretreat a selected area on a fabric, followed by a step in which a benefit agent is bound to said multispecific molecules will result in a more efficient targeting of the benefit agent to the selected area of the fabric and, accordingly, to a process in which the benefit agent can exert its aimed activity more efficiently.
Based on this principle, the invention can be practised in various embodiments, which will be explained below.
According to one aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method of delivering a benefit agent to a selected area of a fabric for exerting a pre-determined activity, which comprises pre-treating said area with a multi-specific binding molecule, said binding molecule having a high binding affinity to said area through one specificity and is capable of binding to said benefit agent through another specificity, followed by contacting said pre-treated area with said benefit agent to exert said predetermined activity to said area.
In another aspect of the present invention a device is provided for use in the method described above for depositing a multi-specific binding molecule to a selected area on a fabric, said binding molecule having a high binding affinity to said area through one specificity and is capable of binding to said benefit agent through another specificity to said agent.
These and other aspects and embodiments will be described in more detail in the description which follows.